The Judgment of God on Fake Miracle Workers, Part 1
Offerings that were made by fire in the Old Testament were said to be a pleasing aroma to the Lord. For example, God said to Moses,
“See that you present my offering, my food for my offerings made by fire, as a pleasant aroma to me, in their due season.” (See Numbers 28:1-2)
However, there was a time when an offering made by fire was not pleasing to the Lord, and that was when two of the sons of Aaron, Nadab and Abihu, offered “strange fire” before the Lord.
Nadab and Abihu, the sons of Aaron, each took his censer, and put fire in it, and laid incense on it, and offered strange fire before Yahweh, which he had not commanded them. Fire came out from before Yahweh, and devoured them, and they died before Yahweh. (Leviticus 10:1-2)
They did what the Lord had not commanded them, and in so doing, incurred irreparable guilt. There was no “undoing” this sin of theirs. What they did was worthy of death. In Numbers 28, we get a glimpse as to why this was so serious. An offering made by fire represented a sacrifice that would atone for sins. To offer fire any other way would be tantamount to saying, “There is another way to atone for sins apart from God's prescribed way.” Nadab and Abihu did not regard God as holy, and paid the ultimate price. In the next verse, we read,
Then Moses said to Aaron, “This is what Yahweh spoke of, saying, ‘I will show myself holy to those who come near me, and before all the people I will be glorified.'” (Leviticus 10:3)
In other words, we need to be careful to honor God as holy at all times. This epitomizes the expression, “If you play with fire, you will get burned.”
A Burning Fire
Not long ago, God gave me a dream in which he showed me fires breaking out in my father's house. My family and some others were there with me in his house. What does this house represent? My father in real life died in the year 2000 and his house was sold. This dream cannot refer to my earthly father's house. It must refer to another house, and I believe that house would be the house of my heavenly father.
Now there are two main references to God's dwelling place in the Bible (at least as far as the New Testament is concerned). First, there is the dwelling place of God in heaven. But second, there is the dwelling place of God on earth which is with his people. On a singular level, “people” refers to each believer, in whom the Holy Spirit dwells (see Romans 8:9, Ephesians 1:13-14). On a corporate level, “people” refers to the body of Christ, that is, the church (not a physical building, but the gathering of believers).
Back in the Old Testament, God dwelt in a temple, above the cherubim above the ark of the covenant. But in Jeremiah 31:31-32, God said that the days would be coming in which he would establish a new covenant. This new covenant is reflected in the assembly of God, in which God now dwells inside of human beings, by his Spirit. It is the Holy Spirit who regenerates our formerly dead spirit, and makes us alive with Christ. This is what it means to be “born again”[1]. Furthermore, in the New Testament, we have this term, “house of God,” “household of God,” or “household of faith,” used several times, referring to the people of God.
For example, Paul writes,
So then you are no longer strangers and foreigners, but you are fellow citizens with the saints and of the household of God. (Ephesians 2:19)
This means that from an imagery standpoint, it would be perfectly legitimate for God to show me a picture of my own father's house to represent the church. And that, I believe, is what God has done. He has shown me this house of my father (which he used to own when he was still alive), and inside the house were my wife and two daughters. This house certainly does not refer to my earthly father's house, so it stands to reason that God is wanting to use this as an image of at least one congregation in particular (perhaps more). The representation is further strengthened by the fact that my wife and two daughters (think, “relatives”) are in the house.
Among God's people on the earth, we often refer to those who have like-minded faith as “brothers” or “sisters” in the faith. This comes directly from the Bible, where it says that when we trust in Jesus, we become “children of God” (see John 1:12). If then those who have this faith are all “children of God,” then you are my brother, or my sister, in the faith, if you also are a person who has trusted in Christ.
So then, in the dream, I see my wife and two daughters. Who do they represent? I think it is clear that even as this house does not represent my earthly father's physical house on the earth, neither do my relatives represent my earthly relatives on the earth. Instead, they must refer to the family of God. It just so happens that they are very appropriate people to use in order to convey this rather significant imagery, because those are exactly the same people who currently share the physical house that I am now living in!
So far, everything makes perfect sense, and God appears to be showing me at least one “assembly of God” or “group of believers” who are represented by being in my father's house, with my wife and two daughters. But wait, there is a bit of a twist — or is it a twist? As I behold, I can see that there are two extra people in this dream, and they both have Down's syndrome. What could this represent? In real life, I have no physical relatives who have Down's syndrome.
It doesn't matter. God wants to convey an image to me, so he has shown me these other two people. There is a specific difference between people who do not have Down's syndrome, and those who do. What is it? I wanted to be sure that I got this imagery correct, so I went to Wikipedia, which should help us. Here is what I found.
Down's syndrome “is usually associated with physical growth delays [and] mild to moderate intellectual disability ....”[2]
Think, “not as mature” and “not as knowledgeable.” I think, in a nutshell, this would characterize the two people that I saw. I think this is the right definition of what God is getting at in the dream.
There is a reason why God has shown me these two people with Down's syndrome. Where can we find them (or something like them, at any rate), in the Bible? Of course, we want to make sure that this dream lines up perfectly with the Bible. So let's think hard. Where could that passage be? There is a passage in the Bible that relates to people who are “more abled” versus those who are “less abled.” In fact, it relates to their level of accountability before the Lord.
If a person who is “more abled” forgets to tie their shoe, will you hold them accountable? Surely, you will. But if a person who is “less abled” forgets to tie their shoe, will you hold them accountable? You will, but with less accountability, for they are not as mature, and not as knowledgeable. With this in mind, where do we find passages in the Bible that relate to accountability? There are some very important passages in the Bible that relate to accountability, and one of them is from Luke 12:48:
“To whomever much is given, of him will much be required; and to whom much was entrusted, of him more will be asked.” (See Luke 12:48)
This seems to fit in perfectly with the imagery of those who do not have Down's syndrome, versus those who do. In other words, God is specifically separating the leaders (the “more abled”), from the non-leaders (the “less abled”), in this place. We will find out why.
One is more accountable before God, being more abled, and the other is less accountable before God, being less abled. Having said this, are there are any other passages in the Bible that relate to accountability? Of course, there are a lot of them. One of them is the well-known passage in James:
Let not many of you be teachers, my brothers, knowing that we will receive heavier judgment. (James 3:1)
Judgment
Now both of the above passages, in fact, are about judgment. As a diagnostic, let us also see if this dream might be about judgment. Are there any clear signs? Actually, there are! For one, fire consumes the entire “house of my father.” It burns right to the ground. This dream is looking ominous. Is God speaking? Surely, he is!
If we then go back, and examine the Luke 12:48 passage carefully (and more broadly, Luke 12:42-48), in context, we can see a much broader picture, in which specifically three types of believers (or purported believers) are mentioned:
(1) The first is faithful (see Luke 12:42-44),
(2) The second is knowing, but disobedient, and receives many stripes (see Luke 12:45-47). In fact, this man is sent to hell, because it says that his portion is “with the unfaithful” (see Luke 12:46). I take it he is among those whom Jesus says, “I never knew you. Depart from me, you who work iniquity” (see Matthew 7:23). Yes, they worked as leaders in God's household, but were imposters. They were not the real deal.
(3) The third is not knowing, but disobedient, and receives few stripes (see Luke 12:48).
And if you think about it, you will see that these are all representative of people I saw in my dream. The second represent the leaders. The third represent the less abled. And the first represent all those who are warning them both to “get out of this house” that is burning to the ground.
Strange Fires
In the dream, small fires begin to “break out” all over my father's house. What house is this? I have examined this dream carefully, and come to the conclusion that it must refer to one (possibly more) Christian assemblies, or so-called Christian “groups” here on this earth, who are purporting to be doing the heavenly father's business. However, there is a real problem in this assembly (or, “these assemblies”), because there are some very unchristian things happening. How so?
If you look at the dream very carefully, you will see that small fires begin to “break out” all over the place, in places where fires should not be. In fact, the fire is in every place, except where it should be, which is the fireplace. Yes, there is no fire in the fireplace, but there are many fires “breaking out” in the rest of the house. What could this possibly represent? If you guessed, strange fires, I think you would be right! If it was not strange, then the fire would be in the fireplace. But when the fire is in every location except the fireplace, that is very strange indeed!
What then is the “rough” definition of “strange fire,” from the Bible standpoint? For one, “strange fire” means, “not doing it in God's prescribed way.” This comes from Leviticus 10:1, which says,
Nadab and Abihu, the sons of Aaron, each took his censer, and put fire in it, and laid incense on it, and offered strange fire before Yahweh, which he had not commanded them. (Leviticus 10:1)
It is clear then, that “strange fire” represents disobedience. So what God has apparently shown me is an assembly (that is, a Christian group) that is being very disobedient to him! In fact, it is at such a point that judgment has been decreed and the place is going to be utterly destroyed! That is the only valid conclusion that you can draw from this dream, which I will present to you later in its entirety, from start to finish.
Now that I have laid the groundwork, would God really judge his own people, today? I mean, wasn't that only for the Old Testament times?
Judgment Today
Immediately after the passage in Luke 12:42-48, Jesus says something very interesting:
“I came to throw fire on the earth. I wish it were already kindled.” (Luke 12:49)
In other words, Jesus is coming to judge (fire in this context, represents judgment). In my dream, I saw that the strange fire consumed the house! In other words, what they sow, comes back to destroy them! But would God judge his own in a severe way, today?
James writes,
Behold, the judge stands at the door. (see James 5:9)
And in 1 Peter 4:17, we read,
For the time is come that judgment must begin at the house of God: and if it first begin at us, what shall the end be of them that obey not the gospel of God? (1 Peter 4:17, KJV)
When it comes to judgment, God can be very strict, indeed. For he is a holy God. When someone trifles him, or make light of his holiness, such as Nadab and Abihu did, then they are treading on thin ice. In the New Testament book of Hebrews, we read that,
The Lord shall judge his people. (See Hebrews 10:30)
And (in the next verse),
It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God. (Hebrews 10:31, KJV)
So would God actually judge his own people in the same way he did back in the book of Leviticus?
Well, yes!
We also know this from the book of Acts, in which a man named Ananias conspired with his wife Sapphira to deceive the leaders (namely, the apostles). They were each questioned, and then lied to the apostles. Peter said,
“Ananias, why has Satan filled your heart to lie to the Holy Spirit?” (See Acts 5:3)
Then,
Ananias, hearing these words, fell down and died. (See Acts 5:5)
The Preacher Who Got it Wrong
I heard a man preaching some time ago, and he said, “Aren't you glad we are not living in the days of the apostles, where God would strike a person dead?” Yet the man did not know that we are living in “those days”, which are called the “last days” in the Bible. The “last days” stretches all the way from the first coming of Jesus to his second coming. Why then do we not see judgment like we see it in the book of Acts? Because people do not perceive it. In fact, God is judging his people.
The Doctor Who Was Struck Dead
I personally know of one man whom God struck dead, because he was “playing” church. He was a so-called “Christian” gynecologist, and before God struck him, the Lord showed me what he was doing in a dream.
This man was actually recommending abortions!
So the Lord struck him.
I can also confirm that he was recommending abortions, because my wife and I have a friend who went to see him when she was pregnant, and she reported back to us that he recommended that she have an abortion. She was horrified! Of course, she declined, because she is God-fearing, unlike the doctor! God judged that man, and struck him dead within about one year. He was only in his fifties. I have also seen God judge in numerous other cases.
Abusers of the Lord's Supper
There is yet another place in the Bible that tells us that God would judge his own people, even through death. In 1 Corinthians 11, Paul writes concerning those who have been judged as a result of abusing the Lord's table (or the Lord's supper, or communion), for they were eating the bread and drinking the cup in a disrespectful manner (it appears some were getting drunk, others were hoarding the bread, acting as though it was their dinner). Paul writes,
For this cause many among you are weak and sickly, and not a few sleep. For if we discerned ourselves, we wouldn't be judged.
This term, “not a few sleep” means that many had died.
Death to Jezebel's Followers
How about other examples? To the assembly (that is, church) in Thyatira, Jesus says of the children (that is, followers) of this wicked and sexually immoral woman named, Jezebel (not the Jezebel of the Old Testament, but someone like her),
“Behold, I will throw her and those who commit adultery with her into a bed of great oppression, unless they repent of her works. I will kill her children with Death, and all the assemblies will know that I am he who searches the minds and hearts. I will give to each one of you according to your deeds.” (Revelation 2:22-23)
The word “children” is used in a figurative sense, referring to her followers — people discipled by her. In other words, she is “mothering” or “giving birth” to spiritual children who are practicing the same things.
Who is it that said, “I will kill her children”? That's Jesus speaking. He's serious about dealing with those who act corruptly in his assembly. This last Scripture passage is especially important, because Jesus warns that he will kill the followers of Jezebel, as well as dealing with Jezebel herself.
Now in the present day, Jezebel is gone. But we have a lot of people who are acting like her. For one, they are people who are staging fake miracles.
The Fake Miracle Workers
I have seen one of these fake miracles on the internet, and it is patently obvious that the miracle was staged. People who do these things are “playing with strange fire” and will be burned in the end. This is consistent with what we read in Proverbs 26:27:
Whoever digs a pit shall fall into it. Whoever rolls a stone, it will come back on him. (Proverbs 26:27)
The people who are playing with strange fire do not know what they are playing with. The imagery I saw in my dream was of total devastation. Nothing was left. God is getting ready to judge these places. God's judgment can be very very strict, indeed. And the Bible warns, saying,
It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God. (Hebrews 10:31, KJV)
These people, like Jezebel, like Ananias and Sapphira, and like the so-called “Christian” gynecologist, are all involved in willful deception. What they appear to show is not who they really are.
If you know who am I am talking about, or if your assembly has been involved in any of this deception, or in any deception at all, that has been intentionally carried out, then I would say, it's time to leave.
(Continued in part 2 of this series.)
[1] Other translations, “born from above.” ↩
[2] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Down_syndrome ↩
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